1. Field of the Invention
This invention relates to the establishment of interconnect between electronic devices. Specifically, the invention deals with a system and a method for creating electrical connections between selected leads of electronic devices.
2. Description of the Related Art
Conventional methods of interconnecting electronic devices include the use of wire wrap boards, proto-boards, multi-wire boards, routed circuit boards and printed circuit boards. While generally suitable for its intended purposes, a wire wrap board limits the number of connections to any one node since a minimum length of wire must contact the wire wrap post to ensure electrical and mechanical integrity. Proto-boards are similar to wire wrap boards in that wires are used to create connections between devices. In the case of proto-boards, the wires are plugged into holes that are electrically parallel to the holes that contain the device leads. Proto-boards are fabricated by hand and are mechanically unstable making them expensive and cumbersome to implement and difficult to debug. Multi-wire boards are composed of a non-conducting surface into which electrical components are inserted. Individually insulated wires are connected to each point to which electrical continuity is desired. For a printed circuit board, as with a routed circuit board and a multi-wire board, electrical connections are difficult and expensive to modify. In addition, advanced technology devices with operating frequencies greater than 50 MHz do not function well using conventional connection technology.
Current approaches to providing electronic interconnect for electronic devices do not address the need for an interconnect architecture that is completely reconfigurable. For example, in the case of integrated circuit programmable cross-point switches, the interconnection capabilities are limited to on chip functions that result in a minimal number of possible configurations. Furthermore, these cross-point switches of the prior art are limited to the modification or customization of a single integrated circuit.